Business Standard
Indian, pro-business center-right
Background
Business Standard was founded on March 27, 1975, as an English-language business daily. It was started by the ABP Group (Ananda Bazar Patrika) and its first issue came out in Kolkata. It grew in circulation but ran heavy losses. In the mid-1990s ABP brought in Uday Kotak of Kotak Mahindra as a capital partner. Kotak Mahindra bought into the paper in 1997, and Kotak-linked entities now hold most of the shares, with ABP as the other shareholder. Having a banker as the main owner means the paper covers a sector its owner works in, though the company says an independent board runs it. It is known for market, banking, and economic policy reporting, and it has Hindi and digital editions. Its editorial line is generally pro-market and pro-reform, and it mostly backs liberalization. On the Trump administration, its 2026 editorials have focused on how U.S. tariff moves, such as proposed Section 301 duties on Indian goods after court setbacks, create trade uncertainty for India. Its coverage describes the policies and their effects on Indian exporters. It does not take a side in U.S. partisan politics.
Sources
- Business Standard – About Us
- Business Standard – Wikipedia
- Media Bias/Fact Check – Business Standard (India)
- Best of BS Opinion: USTR tariff threats deepen trade uncertainty
- Brunswick Review – Asia's Richest Banker (Uday Kotak)
Profile compiled 2026-10-06; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.